Secret Drinker

For more than 100 years the seaside has been the stuff of legend for a messy Bank Holiday knees-up.

Have you ever found yourself abroad, looking at those tiny one-room, one counter bars and wondering how anyone makes a living?

A good day out in the pub often boils down to being in the right place at the right time. And I think I’ve struck gold.

It wouldn’t be an overstatement to say boarded up windows isn’t a good look for a pub.

I passed a sign on my walk to The Swan which stated ‘Britain’s Tallest Windmill - 50yds’.

Walking into The Reindeer Inn was like heading into a timewarp.

“Dog’s welcome. People tolerated.”

Fans of zombie movies and TV series will know all too well those scenes where the story’s hero finds themself in a normal place… but bizarrely alone.

The Still is a real grand-looking old boozer.

With a whiff of summer in the air I thought it would be a good time to start checking out some beer gardens.

When I told a friend I was heading to this pub he sucked the air in through his teeth and wished me ‘good luck’.

There seemed to be a bit of a signal issue at the Drayman’s Arms when I walked in.

In this brave new world of virtue signalling and a desperate need to belong, I must admit I have no idea where I fit in.

“I’m calling it a night,” said the bloke, slapping his empty pint glass on the bar and staggering a little uneasily out the door.

There was a bit of banter flying around the Red Lion as I waited to place my order at the bar.

Our Secret Drinker was delighted to find one of his favourite beers at this pub — but did the place and the price live up to the excitement too?

The Witch and Wardrobe may sound like it’s one beast short of a CS Lewis novel, but this likeable pub doesn’t appear to be lacking much else.

I was sitting in The Tollemache Inn, racking my brain to see if I could think of any other pubs named after a politician.

The King’s Head is a very cool place.

Prince William and Ewan McGregor are among those to have signed the ceiling of this pub, but that’s by no means the most interesting thing here.